I have to confess, that while ferns are my very favorite plants I really know virtually nothing about them. I've read the material (again and again) but it never really "sticks". And it's the same thing with horsetail.

I really DON'T like the effect of it in my perennial beds, but never get out there with sodden newspaper and mulch early enough to suffocate it. And, you know what? in the final analysis I've come to regard it much the same way I regard leeches, ticks, poison ivy, and dandilions.... incredibly adapted, resilient, and regardless of the nuisance factor, worthy of my respect.

It's funny how working in a garden and being outdoors, a "player" on nature's field, brings that out in me...